Back in 1999, a Canadian company called Research in Motion (RIM) designed and developed a feature phone that would ultimately begin the smartphone revolution that we know today. Known as the Blackberry, this device certainly took the corporate world by storm and is still a firm favorite amongst the so-called Professionals. By end of 2010 sales were still solid but some say were losing ground to other smartphone companies. RIM claims some 50 million subscribers but when it comes to smartphone sales, some statistics places it fifth behind the likes of Apple and Google’s Android, with popularity apparently waning. So why is Blackberry falling behind?
As mentioned, there are now some very big players and contenders in the smartphone arena, not least of which is the mighty Apple iPhone in its newest and shiniest version, iPhone 4. Boasting a preposterous amount of Apps in its store (up to half a million, I hear you cry?) compared with just 3,000+ plus for Blackberry and there is no comparison here. Its smaller touch screen fails to resonate with some and generally it is not sexy enough for most to even consider it. Google Androids by comparison have hit the market running and made impressive in-roads into the smartphone market. Even Blackberry’s carrier Verizon seems to have surreptitiously placed it at the back of the shelf in favour of the latest Android offering. Quite a disappointing show from the RIM company, altogether.
Of course, it does have its fans, particularly in the corporate world, who have always favored the Blackberry as the tool for the so-called Professional with its robust platform and its super secure messaging ability amongst other things. That said, a leading bank in the UK last year announced a migration of its very large workforce from BlackBerry to iPhone Version 3 and that must have been a blow to the confidence of Blackberry producers when it has always been able to rely heavily on enterprise support in the past.
It’s just a ‘feature phone’ said one reviewer and that isn’t enough to keep it competitive long-term. Blackberry just does not match up to the iPhone, WP7 and Android devices especially when it comes to mobile Web experience and especially in terms of media consumption, which is what the consumer now demands of their smartphone. Smartphone users have a voracious appetite for media, be it social networking, video, music and Blackberry is not their first choice,
It is clear that RIM needs to go back to the drawing board and fast if they are to even stay in fifth place let alone be truly competitive in the smartphone market of the future. Is it complacency, lack of vision, lack of investment in new technology or a combination of all these things? They have certainly let themselves down. Mobile marketers will be watching Blackberry sales with interest. Smartphone trends are important to those working with mobile marketing so that they can continually identify their target audience.
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